n May 16, 2026, Louisiana will host its first closed party primary election in more than 15 years (Early Voting is already taking place). In a new report, Louisiana Progress, a nonprofit public policy organization that advocates for poor and working-class Louisianans, details the background of this shift in Louisiana’s election structure and estimates the immediate and long-term costs associated with the change.
“The report, which is the most comprehensive of its kind on this issue in Louisiana,” according to Merrilee Montgomery, policy and operations director for Louisiana Progress, “goes beyond direct fiscal impacts by also attempting to assess potential political and social costs as well. On the fiscal side, the switch could potentially cost $17 million more than the estimates described in the original bill enabling the switch to semi-closed primaries. On the political and social side of the ledger, there are concerns about whether the change will make it harder for poor and working-class Louisianans, many of whom aren’t involved in partisan politics, to have a voice in Louisiana’s electoral politics and policy-making. We hope this report will help the people we advocate for better understand what’s happening, and make sure their voices don’t get drowned out by partisan rhetoric.”
“Louisiana has had ‘jungle’ primaries for almost 50 years,” said Louisiana Progress Executive Director Peter Robins-Brown. “This major change, which is launching at the same time that Governor Landry has suspended congressional elections in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Callais decision, is creating confusion and angst among voters. It’s impossible to tell how this will all play out in the long run, but the financial costs coupled with the potential costs of further undermining people’s faith in our electoral system make it imperative that we get as much information out to the public about this as possible. That is our goal with this report.”
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